# Retrohale Burn



## ColdSmoker (Jan 22, 2013)

So it burns my nose pretty good if I retrohale any more than 10 of the draw. Will I adjust to this as time goes on? I am rather new, but have smoked other stuff for over 20 years and am skeptical that I will build a tolerance to this.


----------



## purepoker (Sep 15, 2011)

What are you smoking?



ColdSmoker said:


> So it burns my nose pretty good if I retrohale any more than 10 of the draw. Will I adjust to this as time goes on? I am rather new, but have smoked other stuff for over 20 years and am skeptical that I will build a tolerance to this.


----------



## ColdSmoker (Jan 22, 2013)

mostly full bodied cigars...


----------



## purepoker (Sep 15, 2011)

call me a dummy, can you give an example of a cigar that burns...


----------



## Wicked_Rhube (Jul 29, 2012)

I think yes. When I started I could only "nose-blow" a few times per cigar, it burned quite a bit, and like you I had smoked other stuff for 20 years (no more though). Burned like capsaicin heat not like fire. The type didn't matter either, natural, CT, or black as pitch maduro. I kept at it and after 6 months or so I forgot all about it. I really forgot that it used to bother me, until now when I saw this thread. I couldn't imagine smoking without the retrohale now as that is a very enjoyable part of the experience for me. Hope it turns works out for you too.


----------



## jimrockford (Jul 6, 2010)

Most of my cigar enjoyment comes from the retrohale. I actually retrohale almost every puff. I don't feel I pick up the nuances from taste alone. Over time, it became more and more tolerable, and in the end, more pleasurable. I think if you stick with it, you'll find it really enhances your enjoyment.


----------



## stonecutter2 (Jul 12, 2012)

As a general rule, I've found that age impacts the retrohale burn. Aged sticks don't burn me as much or at all. So, I think this is a stick thing...not something you will be able to adjust to. Though you may tolerate it more over time.


----------



## CarnivorousPelican (Jan 25, 2013)

What is the point of retrohaling to get the full profile so I don't see any reason that you would want to retrohale a large portion of the puff  Just to get a taste of it over time you will deaden your sinuses enough  I smoked for 15 years straight cigerettes mainly but I always exhaled out of my nose  but even these cigars some like the Anejo unrested is pretty intense at the get go... My sinuses get jacked up if I retrohale to much.. So I may retrohale every 3rd of a cigar or when the flavor profile changes just to pick up everything that is if am checking out a cigar or savoring it


----------



## Big_e (Feb 21, 2013)

Ok, noob question here, what is this retrohale? Do you partially inhale so as to blow out your nose?

I've always just let the smoke roll out my mouth and as the smoke envelopes me, I'd inhale and "second hand" smoke off my self and found this most enjoyable.


----------



## CarnivorousPelican (Jan 25, 2013)

Big_e said:


> Ok, noob question here, what is this retrohale? Do you partially inhale so as to blow out your nose?
> 
> I've always just let the smoke roll out my mouth and as the smoke envelopes me, I'd inhale and "second hand" smoke off my self and found this most enjoyable.


Don't inhale. Just using pressure to force the smoke to the back of your mouth / pharynx through your sinuses and out your nose. I wouldn't suggest inhaling 

What is retro-haling? How to smoke cigars through the nose? @ Cigar Inspector

note: I inhale because I quit cigarettes and smoke cigars instead so I have a nicotine deal am probably loaded to the brim ( o.d ) with nicotine hence why I can go 2 hours without any nicotine craving and before it was 10 minutes I would get nervous  The CDC says Cigar smoke inhaled is far worse than cigarettes...


----------



## Big_e (Feb 21, 2013)

Ahh, thanks for that CP!


----------



## piperdown (Jul 19, 2009)

I'm not sure I get 10% of the smoke as it's just a little to pick up the nuances. Took me a while to get the hang of it a couple years ago. Just really takes a bit as our olfactory senses are sensitive.


----------



## HIM (Sep 12, 2012)

Stick with it hoppy and youll get used to it. A lot of the smokes I thought had some serious pepper in the retrohale don't really burn anymore. Now I just get the pepper without the burn. Also, how much of the smoke are you retrohaling? The more volume the more it burns has been my experience.


----------



## Keebaw (Oct 6, 2012)

So I didn't know about the "retro" in the early portion of my hobby, which was probably a good thing since I was going for the fullest of the full and loved massive ligero ( I'm a Vit N junky and was used to dipping moist snuff in those days). On the retrohale now, I like pepper a lot but I am starting to like mild/mediums now too that have complexity. In an odd way I enjoy the, "wow, that just woke me up!" on some retrohales, other times I take baby puffs to keep it really cool and light to retro for flavors. I'll agree that doing it too much makes it harder to pick up flavors later as your nose gets burned and sore later (for me, I can feel it the next morning). 

But I enjoy the burn sometimes, maybe as a throwback to my tobacco nasal snuff days. I definitely lost part of my sense of smell doing that frequently and daily for months but it came back after I stopped. Lot's of good times spent there happily crying after a strong pinch! 

I think retrohaling can help enjoy the cigar experience and should be done to a degree you can handle, in moderation. That way you don't over do it for your nose and effect later smoking sessions and missing nuances in future cigars, imho.


----------



## TJB (Dec 10, 2012)

If you retrohale too quick it will burn. Wait until almost the end if your breath out before you close your mouth and push the rest through your nose. You do not need to pass a lot of smoke thru to get the nuances. When I push out the nose too soon it lights up my big Italian nose like no tomorrow . There is a reason why we make good cooks .


----------



## SystemError (Apr 9, 2012)

Take a puff, blow out most of the smoke, inhale the last little bit and exhale through your nose. I get the most falvor that way.


----------



## CarnivorousPelican (Jan 25, 2013)

SystemError said:


> Take a puff, blow out most of the smoke, inhale the last little bit and exhale through your nose. I get the most falvor that way.


You don't have to inhale  I don't know why I advocate not inhaling  I am inhaling every puff off of this OpusX am smoking.. I am taking these babies with me all the way to the grave 

As you can see from this wonderful depiction









That you don't have to inhale... AS you can see by closing the mouth and blowing through the nose the natural laws of physics takes place


----------



## DarrelMorris (Feb 7, 2012)

If you're exhaling 10% through your nose then you should be fine. It just takes a small amount of smoke.


----------



## Livin' Legend (Sep 23, 2012)

I think the key to preventing the burn is to A) going very slow so as not to overload your sinuses and B) don't retrohale the entire puff.

As a rule, I start on mostly full lungs, take a puff, slowly release that breath, not so much blowing the smoke as wafting, allowing only a little out of my nose throughout the exhale. Until I figured that out, I was wondering what the big deal about these cigar things was, because I was getting next to nothing strictly through the mouth.


----------



## tatuaje09 (Feb 2, 2013)

Maybe I'm odd (in fact I know I am) but I love a good retro burn!


----------



## SystemError (Apr 9, 2012)

CarnivorousPelican said:


> You don't have to inhale  I don't know why I advocate not inhaling  I am inhaling every puff off of this OpusX am smoking.. I am taking these babies with me all the way to the grave
> 
> As you can see from this wonderful depiction
> 
> ...


I understand you do not need to inhal for smoke to travel through your nose. But when you inhale first, it eliminates the burn.


----------



## CarnivorousPelican (Jan 25, 2013)

SystemError said:


> I understand you do not need to inhal for smoke to travel through your nose. But when you inhale first, it eliminates the burn.


ya... I inhale about 25-50% of the cigars I smoke  I just know alot of people are against the inhale deal since it seems many are not full addicts like myself... Personally I see nothing wrong with it and believe it gives a different depth to the smoking experience like addiction robbing old ladies and selling sex... :smoke2:


----------

